Making the case: Why Payton Thorne should be Auburn's starting quarterback

Experience, among other things, could push Payton Thorne to the top of the QB depth chart.

Hugh Freeze will coach his first game as Auburn's head coach on September 2nd, against the UMass Minutemen. There are many unknowns heading into this first game, how will the new offensive line play, will the defensive line be productive, and most importantly who will be the starting quarterback? There are three competitors, the front-runner transfer Payton Thorne, hot shot redshirt freshman Holden Gernier, and speedy Robby Ashford. 

Over the next few days, Auburn Daily will highlight each quarterback and list why they should start for Auburn in 2023. 

There are three factors that make Thorne a true leader for this race. Thorne has the experience, production, and leadership to take on the role of SEC starter. 

Experience

Thorne has started over 25 games at the D1 level. The first start of which came against Penn State in the last game of the 2020 season. While Thorne was a redshirt Freshman and making his first start, Ashford was a Freshman at Oregon, focusing on his baseball career for the Ducks, and Gernier had just wrapped up his Junior season in high school where he took the Benedictine Cadets to the 4th round in the Georgia playoffs. Thornes' 26 starts have led to a 16-10 record, which was the exact same record that Bo Nix had during his time at Auburn. 

Production

Thorne during his career for the Michigan State Spartans put up solid numbers, but in the Auburn record books, he would be an all-timer. Racking up 6,493 passing yards, 49 passing touchdowns, and a completion percentage of 61.0. Auburn has a history of being a run-first offense, and the statistics prove this, as Thorne would rank in the top 10 all-time among Auburn passing yards. 

Thorne would be in sixth place, in between a Heisman winner in Pat Sullivan and one of the more beloved QBs in Auburn history in Dameyune Craig. Touchdown-wise, he once again is top 5, as he trails only Pat Sullivan who threw 52 touchdowns during his Auburn career. Thorne stays in the top five amongst Auburn QBs in completion percentage as well, as for quarterbacks with at least 600 attempts he ranks third behind Jarrett Stidham and Jason Campbell. 

Leadership

Leadership can not be defined, it is not trackable by a number or a percentage but through action. Thorne has been proactive since his arrival on campus, pushing his teammates and trying to form chemistry among himself, the running backs, and the wide receivers. Arriving on campus in the middle of May, the reports started flowing in of private workouts held with wide receivers, and groups of the team led by Thorne studying film and the playbook. 

Auburn held its first fall scrimmage under Hugh Freeze last Saturday, and the reports are that despite some drops from wide receivers and some miscalculations on routes Thorne performed well. The decision for who Freeze wants at the helm for his first year will not be an easy decision, but Thorne is doing everything in his power to make himself the only viable option heading into September. Assuming the veteran transfer can get the playbook down, combined with his hard work forming chemistry the job looks to be his. 

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